Across Seas
by ZimFan21
Summary: Complete! Wally finds out he is moving to Australia, but he doesn't tell his friends about it. Eleven years later Kuki and the gang take a vacation to Australia, but they didn't expect to run into Wally while they were there! 3&4 Rom
1. An Inturrupted Moment of Truth

**Authors Note: **I do not own KND. Now, on to the story.

**Chapter 1: An Interrupted Moment of Truth**

Nigel frowned as he inspected the last two cold slices of pizza left uneaten in the cardboard box sitting on the kitchen table. One of his comrades had decided to skip dinner. It wasn't difficult for Numbuh one to guess who the culprit was. He picked up the near-empty box and turned toward an all too familiar jet-black haired girl in a green sweater who was sitting on the couch playing with her favorite rainbow monkey doll. Nigel knew that Wally probably wouldn't listen to anyone else, but if anyone could get through to that boy, she could.

"Numbuh three, will you go check on Numbuh four?" asked Nigel. "He needs to come down here before all the pizza is gone."

Kuki turned her attention to Nigel. Unfortunately she hadn't seen Wally all day and had no idea where he was. But eager none the less, she stood up and agreed to go search his room for him. Skipping cheerfully, she continued up the stairs while humming the Rainbow Monkeys tune.

Nigel shook his head and set the pizza box back down on the table. Even he, the team's "fearless" leader, had started to worry about his comrade. Numbuh four had been acting so strange lately. Everyone in the tree house had noticed, but no one seemed to be able to figure out why. Of course, everyone had their own assumptions. Nigel figured it was simply because they were all getting older. While it was true that they were all only about eleven, that thirteenth year seemed to be creeping up right around the corner.

Setting aside depressing thoughts, Nigel studied the pizza again and then looked over at Numbuh two. Hoagie caught his glance and instantly knew what was on Numbuh one's mind.

"I know what you're thinking," explained Hoagie crossing his arms, "but I didn't eat _that_ much of the pizza. Numbuh four obviously doesn't mind if I have a few of his pieces. Besides, I can prove it. I'm perfectly fit, see." Hogie patted his stomach to prove his point.

"Please," said Nigel rolling his eyes. "We ordered five extra large pizzas and you ate two of them alone."

"Hey, just because you're a workaholic and you never have the time to sit down and enjoy a meal doesn't mean us brilliant engineers have to starve ourselves."

"I'm no workahol….."

Suddenly, both boys whipped around at the sound of a muffled chuckle. They turned to see a relaxed Numbuh five lying on the couch across the room with her hat covering her eyes and a small smirk spread across her face.

"And what exactly do you find so funny?" questioned Nigel.

"Nothin," chuckled Numbuh five. "That's just gotta be the funniest remark I've ever heard Numbuh two say in a long time."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" asked Hoagie crossing his arms defensively.

Abby smirked again and stood up.

"Well I'm going to find a nice quiet place to relax," she said yawning. "After all, this living room always has somethin' rowdy going on in here. Night ya'll."

The two boys watched puzzled as she left the room without a word.

* * *

Wally sat alone in his boxing ring bed, thinking. Lately, Wally's favorite pastime had been avoiding his friends to find someplace quiet where he could be alone. Frequently, when no one noticed him slip away, he would hideout in his room, lie down on his back in the middle of his boxing ring, and simply stare up at the ceiling. He felt his room was the only place he could think of to be alone without having to deal with the hassle of visitors. Wally hated it when even his friends interrupted him during his alone time, especially when he was deep in thought devising a way to build up enough courage to tell a certain someone how he felt about her.

"_What's wrong with me?" _wondered Wally._ "I can kick bad guy butt no problem but I can't do a simple cruddy thing like talk to a girl! She's even one of my closest friends and I'm still not able to talk to her. But…I've got to tell her sometime, right? When? Today? No….no way I could talk to her today. There's too much going on. But…time is running out. I need to tell her soon."_

Wally sighed in grief.

"_But_ _what would the rest of the team think? Would they laugh? What about all the other operatives in the KND. They would probably all just make fun of me," _he pondered. He sat up and rubbed his face in his hands.

"_I think I'm going crazy. It's starting to hurt when I even just think about her. It just reminds me that I'm too much of a coward to tell her how I feel. But I need to tell her… I need to tell her before it's too late!"_

Wally sighed again and this time buried his face in his hands. He didn't have a clue what to do. He knew that he had always had feelings for Kuki, but his ego wouldn't allow anyone else to see or know about it. He was afraid. He was afraid because if she said no, not only would he lose her, but he would also lose his sense of pride. But he was running out of time.

Wally remembered the day he and Kuki met, how pretty she looked. Back then it had just been a childhood crush, but as time went on he had realized he was falling more and more in love with the girl. He didn't know why; it just seemed to happen. Now, being an eleven year old, he realized that she was the most important person in the world to him. But what would happen after they left the KND, when they all entered their teens? Of course Kuki would never have any problems getting a boyfriend, but that's what frightened Wally the most. What if she forgot about him completely? Or worse, what if she didn't have the same feelings for him?

As Wally continued to mope in his sorrow, Numbuh 3 suddenly swung the door open to his room, forcing it to slam against the wall with a loud bang. Startled, Wally nearly jumped out of his sneakers and fell off the boxing mat and onto to the floor.

"HI WALLY!" cried Kuki as she threw her green sleeve-covered hands in the air. Kuki giggled as Wally struggled to get back on his feet. She loved catching him off guard and surprising him.

"Gotcha!" giggled Kuki. "You know you are _way_ too easy to sneak up on!"

"Are you tryin' to gimme me a cruddy heart attack!" snapped Wally. "Besides, even if you did scare me it doesn't count cuz I was all daydreamin' and stuff.'"

"Opps, sorry," apologized Kuki, giggling. "I just couldn't resist. Oh yeah, Numbuh one wants you to come downstairs for some pizza. He said you skipped out on dinner and he wants to make sure you've eaten before our next mission."

"Eh, no thanks. I'm not really hungry," said Wally. He sat back down on the mat and leaned against a corner pole. Kuki could sense something was wrong with her friend. Her smile faded and she went over to sit down next to him. Wally's heart started beating a little faster as she got closer to him.

"Wally, are you okay? Is something bothering you? "

Wally looked away from her and tried to pretend he was fine. "Don't worry about it. I just need a little rest," he said waving her off.

"Are you sure? You've been acting a little strange lately," said Kuki.

"Define strange."

"Well…you've been spending a lot of alone time in your room lately. The others are starting to notice it. I have too. It feels like you are trying to avoid us Wally, especially me."

Wally fell silent and tried his best to avoided eye contact. It pained him to think that he had made her feel unneeded. He rested his hands in his lap and started to shuffle his thumbs nervously. He knew what she was saying was right, he had been trying to avoid her, but for a different reason than what she thought. He attempted to look up at her, but quickly looked away again. Kuki began to grow impatient.

"Seriously Wally, you can tell me anything," she said placing a hand over his. "What's wrong?"

Wally felt his heart beat pick up and his face turn bright red at the touch of her hand/sleeve. He involuntarily shifted his attention to the small contact between him and the girl he had a serious crush on. For a few seconds, his world stood still. Everything around them seemed to fall silent. Finally, after making up his mind, Wally took a deep breath.

"Kuki," he started, his voice weak, "do you remember the time I broke one of your stuffed animals, or the time that our negative counterparts were trying to take over our world?"

"Yes," replied Kuki, "but I don't see what that has to do with…"

"Wait…let me finish," interrupted Wally. "When _your_ negative counterpart approached me, I noticed right away it wasn't you. I knew it wasn't you because…when I looked into her eyes…I just knew that it couldn't possibly be you. And the other time when I broke your toy…I didn't dress up as a replacement _only_ because I felt guilty. Never in a million years would I agree to something so humiliating. I only did it because….well….I….um…"

Wally reached over and took both her hands in his. He could feel his heart racing, his palms sweating. He looked up into her eyes.

"Kuki," he said. "I just want to tell you that…I…I….lo…"

He was cut short by the loud ringing of the emergency mission alert alarm. Kuki immediately snapped to attention and dashed towards the transmission room. Wally followed, but at a much slower and more disappointed pace.

"What's going on guys?" Kuki asked as he rushed into the transmission room.

"An emergency distress call," answered Numbuh one.

The team watched the transmission screen as a fellow KND operative filled them in on an urgent mission report.

"Attention Kids Next Door Sector V." reported the female operative. "We need you immediately to stop a group of adults who are capturing kids caught eating junk food and are forcing them to eat nothing but spinach until their plates are completely clean. As you know spinach is a gross plant that adults use to overpower us kids, so be careful! Here are the coordinates. Good luck!" The screen went blank as she signed off. Not a minute was wasted as the team scrambled to a ship, all except Numbuh four who took a little longer than usual to get aboard.

* * *

When the team arrived at their given destination, they were confused. They saw no sign of a group of kids _or_ adults, just a miserable little worn-down shack in the middle of nowhere. Nigel ordered the team to search around the area and keep a sharp look out in case it was a trap.

Wally bravely made his way solitarily to the back of the shack, aiming his gumball gun directly out in front. Too busy concentrating on his suspicions, he hadn't realized how far he had wondered from his team. Normally, when they were called out to do a job, it was pretty easy to identify where the action was taking place, but this time was different. The cold air stung his skin as it ran through his hair and across his face. The sweat on the back of his neck caused a chill to run down his spine. All was quiet, except for the faint voices of his teammates in the distance.

Suddenly, he felt someone grab him by the hood and drag him behind a patch of bushes. Before he could call for help, he was stripped of his weapon and a hand was placed over his mouth. After a minute or two of struggling, he finally gave up exhausted and opened his eyes to view his captors. He wasn't too shocked to find the Delightful Children surrounding him.

"What the crud is going on here?" he asked confused. He realized that his hands had been tied behind his back. "What are you creeps up to?"

The Delightful Children chuckled at Wally's remark. "Glad you asked," they said simultaneously. "It turns out we've discovered that your parents have decided to move to Australia, taking you and your brother with them. Based on our observations, you haven't decided to tell any of your teammates have you?"

"What? How would you cruddy liars find out something like that? Besides, what concern is it to you dorks even if it _were_ true?" questioned Wally.

The Delightful Children laughed again. "It just so happens to complete the first step of our glorious plan," they said.

"What plan?" questioned Wally.

"Our brilliant plan of weakening the kids next door of course," smirked the Delightful Children. "But don't worry, we wouldn't tell you the whole plan. That's for us to know and you to find out."

"Big cruddy deal," spat Wally. "Once you let me go I'll just tell my friends that you are planning something against the Kids Next Door and then they will find out what you creeps are up to. Bet you didn't think of that did ya Delightful Dorks!"

"On the contrary, we were counting on it," they smirked. "And if you _do_ interfere in our plan at all, now that you know about it, we will take your precious Number three captive after she is decommissioned And since you will not be around to stop us, she will never remember you or the Kids Next Door _ever_ again."

Wally was now in a rage. "You cruddy losers better leave her out of this!" he yelled. "Or I'll punch you Delightful dorks so hard that you'll…"

"Ah….ah…ah…watch your temper," interrupted the Delightful Children. "Remember we have you in _our_ control now. You wouldn't want to let anything bad happen to your friends would you?"

Wally clenched his fists and let his anger surge through him."When is my flight to Australia leaving?"

"Tomorrow afternoon. Now I'm sure you will choose your words wisely from this point on, agreed?"

Wally scowled, but nodded his head. The Delightful Children cut him free and then took out a small black device. They pressed a button on the device and a black limousine pulled up and opened its door to let them in. As they entered the car, they turned back toward Wally.

"Remember Wallabee, if you rat us out…your friends will face the consequences."

Wally watched as the Delightful Children climbed into the limo and drove away into the night, leaving him standing alone in the cold.


	2. The Last Mission

**Chapter 2: The Last Mission**

Wally lay on his pillow that night thinking about the trouble he had gotten himself into. He hadn't told anybody about his encounter with the Delightful Children. He was too afraid of them coming after Kuki. If anything happened to her because of him he could never be able to live with himself. He sighed and stared up at the ceiling, his eyes burning.

"What am I gonna do?" he whispered. He would give anything to find the courage to tell Kuki how he really felt about her. Maybe they could spend at least one last day together. The thought nearly brought tears to his eyes. He was never going to see her again, not even if he joined the Australian Kids Next Door. He turned onto his side and let a few of his tears fall into his pillow as he slowly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

The next morning, Wally got up and dragged himself downstairs for breakfast. Abby, who was sitting on the couch, noticed his sleepy gaze and started questioning him.

"What's up with you?" she asked looking up from her magazine.

"Nothin'…just couldn't sleep well." He yawned and stretched his arms a bit. "So what's for breakfast?"

Abby pointed to where Hoagie and Nigel were sitting. Wally saw the cereal box of Rainbow Munchies and slowly made his way to the table. When he sat down he immediately grabbed a bowl, poured some milk in with his cereal and began to shovel food into his mouth.

"Something wrong Numbuh four?" asked Nigel. "You seem tense, and you've hardly said a word. We didn't even see you at all last night for dinner."

Now, Wally was getting slightly irritated.

"I told you guys…I'M….FI"

He stopped short when he saw Kuki come down the stairs. Abby looked up from her magazine and smiled as she watched his change in behavior.

"Well?" asked Nigel, snapping Wally back to reality. Wally was about to answer again, but Abby cut him off.

"Didn't you hear the boy? He's _tired_," she said looking back into her magazine with a smirk. "Most people _are_ cranky when they're tired ya know."

"I see," said Nigel raising an eyebrow. He hadn't missed Wally's gaze as Kuki had come down the stairs. "You know you should have gotten more sleep Numbuh four. We have a very important mission today."

Kuki had now approached the table and sat down next to Wally, which made him slightly uncomfortable. She started to fix herself a bowl of cereal while getting involved in the conversation.

"So what's the mission Numbuh one?" she asked.

"It's very serious," started Nigel, "A group of adults have captured hundreds of kids and have been forcing them to watch educational television instead of cartoons."

"Is it the same group of adults that we _found_ yesterday?" asked Hoagie.

"Yes, but unfortunately the adults got away before we got there. This time they are trying to brainwash kids so that they can take over T.V. The only chance of stopping them is if we, the Kids Next Door, go rescue these kids from the fun-hating adults and save cartoons from being kicked off the air. However, we must be careful. If we get caught, the consequences could be horrific."

"Alright, you heard the man!" shouted Abby as she tossed her magazine to the side and headed to the ship.

"Kids Next Door, battle stations!" shouted Nigel and everyone ran to the ships, except for Wally, who walked.

* * *

When they reached the adults' hideout, Hoagie landed the ship. Wally and Abby instantly jumped out with their weapons pointed outward. No adults were to be seen, so they gave the all-clear and the rest of the team hopped out of the ship. Hoagie looked up at the tiny little tree house hideout built above a wide river, which carried a strong current. A faint light could be seen glowing through the window of the tree house even though it was daylight.

"That's it?" asked Hoagie. "They took over a tiny little tree house. How are a hundred kids gonna fit in _there_?"

"They must be brainwashing small groups of kids at a time Numbuh two, and the tree house is obviously a failed attempt at covering up their secret," said Nigel.

"Right, I knew that," said Hoagie feeling slightly embarrassed.

The five of them crossed a wooden bridge to get over the river, which made Wally a bit nervous. After reaching the other side of the bank they quietly made their way up to the top of the tree house. The rush of the river drowned out the sound of their footsteps as they snuck up to the door. Instantly, Nigel kicked the door open and aimed his gumball gun inside, along with the rest of the team.

"Hold it right there," said Nigel. "Surrender and this will go a lot quicker."

The biggest of the adults stepped forward and approached the squad with a giant metal bowl with long wires connected to it.

"And what if we refuse?" asked the adult in a deep, grumpy voice.

"Then we will have no choice but to kick your butt," said Nigel as he fired his gumball gun. Unfortunately, the adult shielded himself with the metal bowl, and the gumballs bounced off and back toward Nigel. He quickly rolled to the side to dodge them.

The rest of the team raised their weapons and were about to fire, but they were stopped when the other adults came from behind and grabbed their collars. The team struggled to get free, but it was no use. They had been caught.

The adults strapped Nigel and his team into wooden chairs and placed a metal bowl on each of their heads. The largest adult chuckled as he watched the team struggle while a T.V. was placed in front of them.

"Do you know what those things on your heads are?" he asked rhetorically. "They are brainwashing devices, and you five are about to be brainwashed along with all the other kids we've captured! Steve, start up the machine!"

"Uh sir, I don't think it's wise to generate that much energy at one time on such a little machine," warned Steve, the generator operator.

"I don't care," said the boss, "This is sector V we are talking about! I want them drained of all cartoon knowledge as soon and as quickly as possible!"

Steve sighed and turned on the switches controlling the team's wires. He watched the machine carefully as it tried to generate enough power to brainwash the team, along with all the other kids in the room. He was right; the machine couldn't take so much power. Sparks started flying and the adults ran over to get it under control.

Wally felt his straps loosen a bit. Within a few more seconds of struggling, he finally sprang free. He then ran around and untied everyone else's straps while the adults were distracted with the machine. Soon enough, everyone was free, but they were all still in danger. Nigel ran to the exit and motioned for his team to follow.

"Comon guys! We gotta get outta…."

Suddenly, the machine exploded, expelling the team, and everyone else, out of the now destroyed tree house. His friends landed safely on the bank, but Wally felt himself splash into the river. As he felt the cold water soaking into his clothes and sneakers, he struggled to stay afloat, but the current was far too strong. It rapidly carried him downstream.

Realizing attempting to swim was useless, Wally reached his hand out, hoping to grab anything that could save him. Luckily, his hand made contact with an extended tree root, and he pulled his upper body out of the water, gasping for air. He clenched to the tree root, and with all his strength Wally successfully pulled himself out of the violent current. He collapsed on the side of the bank, and lay breathing heavily. Suddenly, in the corner of his eye, he noticed something shiny making its way downstream. He reached out and snatched it from the water's edge. It was Nigel's communications watch! Luckily for him, it was waterproof. He pressed a button on the watch and a young girl's face popped up on a tiny monitor screen.

"What is it Sector V?" she asked urgently. Wally tried his hardest to speak, but he was out of breath.

"Numbuh 86…send…a rescue team…right away. Sector V…in trouble," he explained.

"Right away Numbuh Four!" said Numbuh 86 and she signed off.

Wally lay back down again to catch his breath and looked over at where the explosion had taken place. He now realized how far down the river had carried him. He could hardly see the tree house anymore, even though there wasn't much of it left.

Wally continued to listen to the sounds of the voices far in the distance while breathing heavily. Sure enough, he saw the rescue ship fly overhead and land at the site of the explosion. Wally regained his strength and stood up, noticing that he had lost his left shoe. He decided to forget about it and hurried back toward the tree house to get on with the mission and find his team. However, something stopped him. He curiously looked at Nigel's watch; it read 1:00 P.M.

Wally panicked; he hadn't realized how long they had been gone. He was leaving for the airport in an hour and a half! Then, he heard some voices approaching him. He quickly dived behind a cluster of thick bushes and fell as silent as possible.

"Wally! Where are you?"

Wally recognized the voice immediately. It was Kuki. She and the team were looking for him, and they sounded worried. Wally also noticed Kuki tightly hugging his left shoe.

"Numbuh four?" yelled Nigel, "If you're out there, answer us!"

Wally was so tempted to jump out and let them know he was okay, but he stood his ground and decided that if he didn't want to tell them he was leaving, he would stay quiet.

_Besides,"_ he thought, _"I'm better off "dead" anyway_

"This ain't funny Numbuh four," shouted Abby. "It's no time to be playin' games!"

They all turned silent, waiting for a response, but all they could hear was the sound of the water rushing violently downstream. Kuki held Wally's shoe closer to her and started crying. Abby went over and comforted her. Wally hated to see Kuki cry like that; he clutched his stomach, feeling it tighten up. He felt the burning sensation of tears developing in his eyes. He felt the chocking pain in his throat take over his voice. He couldn't stand it for much longer.

"Comon Numbuh three, we've got to go help the other kids. There's nothing more you can do," sighed Nigel. He turned and went back to the ship along with the rest of the team, but Kuki hesitated as she continued to stare at the river.

"Goodbye Wally…I'll miss you…"

She hugged his shoe even tighter and cried into her sleeve as she turned and went back with the rest of the team.

Wally desperately watched her go. It took every fiber of his being to hold back from running after her. He painfully watched until she was fully out of sight. Then he wiped the tears from his eyes and sprinted towards the Sector V tree house as fast he could.

* * *

Within the half hour, Wally reached the tree house. He knew the rest of the team had headed to the moon base to announce his disappearance and wouldn't be back for quite a while. He hurried to his room, stuffed a suitcase full of whatever clothes he found, he changed his shoes and wet clothes, and headed off to his own house.

When he reached his house his parents were outside waiting for him in the car. His mom had a fit and chewed him out for being so late, but eventually they got into the car and headed off to the airport. After security and having everything taken care of, the plane finally took off. Wally stared out of the window and watched as the houses and buildings grew smaller and smaller. The image of Kuki still filled his mind. It ate away at his soul knowing how much he had hurt her by his disappearance.

"Goodbye Kuki…I'll miss you too," he whispered, placing his hand on the cold window. He stared down at the world below as the plane rose higher and higher until it was above the clouds, leaving the world behind that he had once known to be home.


	3. Eleven Years Later

**Chapter 3: Eleven Years Later**

"Hey Wally it's getting' late. I think we should call it a night," Josh yelled out to Wally as he was just coming in from his last wave.

"Yeh, I know," said Wally, "but on the first day of summer the surf is just way too good to pass up."

"Right on mate. I've been dying for a decent ride like this for weeks," added Buck as the three friends carried their surf boards to Josh's truck.

Josh and Buck had been Wally's two best friends ever since the day he had moved to Australia. They were both great surfers, and since they wanted Wally to join them in all their activities, they eventually taught Wally how to swim and surf. Ironically, Wally ended up becoming better at swimming and surfing than Josh and Buck combined.

Wally had grown up a lot in the past eleven years. His muscles had gotten stronger over time, noticeably in the stomach area, and his voice had gotten deeper. The best change in the twenty-one year old, however, was his height. He now stood 5'9'' and wasn't the tiny little shrimp he used to be back when he was a kid. The only things that hadn't changed were his personality and the color of his blond hair.

Josh and Buck both had short brown hair and were the same age as Wally. Josh had his hair spiked and a darker shade of brown, but Buck's hair was shaggy and a lighter shade of brown. All three young men were slim and in great shape. The only downside was Josh and Buck did have a very strong feeling against tourists. They loved to scam them for money, sometimes a good deal of money, but it never enough to get arrested for.

Over time, Wally too had developed a dislike to outsiders. It wasn't the fast that they weren't Australian; it was just how much they crowded the place. Good surfing spots were taken over by lousy surfers who always trashed the place, and parking lots were filled with lazy people who could have walked the small distance from their hotels to the beach.

Wally also realized after many scams that tourists _were _gullible enough to fall for almost anything. There was once a time when Josh and Buck had bought a ton of sunscreen from a drug store, and they set up a supplies stand on a beach and sold each bottle for twice as much as what they had paid. They made well over $500 that day and split the money, which had convinced Wally into joining in on their little scams. After all, his job as a surf lessons teacher only paid for his bills; he still needed money for food and spending. After a long ride home, Wally stepped out of the truck, grabbed his surf board, and started to head inside his house.

"See ya tomorrow mate!" Josh shouted out as he waved goodbye and began to turn his truck around, careful not to hit Wally's jeep.

"Yeh, see ya," Wally waved back and dragged himself into his house. "_Ah, home sweet home,"_ thought Wally as he went to the fridge for a snack to eat before bed.

Wally's house was really nothing more than a shack, but it was big enough for one or two people, about the size of a small condo. It was located right next to the ocean, which explained why he couldn't afford a bigger place. Still, he had electricity, secured cabin walls, and good plumbing, so he wasn't complaining. The only problem was that even with Josh and Buck, he was still very lonely.

Wally changed into some night clothes and lay face-up on his bed. He turned on his side to face the wall, which had a collection of photographs with him, Josh, and Buck in them. However, there was one very old picture that stood out; the one picture he looked at from the day he left his old friends. He stared at the picture of him with his pals in the Kids Next Door as it filled him with a very lonely feeling.

"Eleven years…" Wally sighed. "It's hard to believe isn't it?"

He tore his eyes away from the picture and leaned over to turn out the light. He listened to the soft crashing of the waves as he drifted off to sleep in his so-called paradise.

* * *

Kuki sipped her hot cocoa as she talked with Abby, who was sitting across the table from her. It was the beginning of winter, and they were at a small coffee shop having breakfast and talking about where they were going with their lives.

"So you still want to become a marine biologist huh?" asked Abby as she took a bite from a cinnamon roll.

"Yeah, the job sounds pretty interesting and I think I will like it," said Kuki.

"I wouldn't doubt it," said Abby, "it suits you well."

"So what do _you_ plan to do Abby?" asked Kuki.

"Me? I plan to become a government spy," answered Abby. "All those years being in the Kids Next Door showed me how much fun it really was."

The conversation eventually slowed to an awkward silence as Kuki sipped her cocoa and stared off out the window and into space. Abby ate her cinnamon roll as she studied Kuki's expression, noticing the far off look in her gaze. She knew exactly what was on Kuki's mind.

"You still miss him don't you?" asked Abby in a mellow voice.

Kuki turned back toward Abby.

"Don't be ridiculous Abby how could I…"

"I know its hard Kuki, but you need to realize….it's been eleven years," said Abby in a semi comforting tone.

"No Abby, I know he's gone, it's just there's something that I need to ask you," she said setting her cocoa down on the table.

"I'm all ears girl," said Abby.

"Well, it was obvious you knew I loved him eleven years ago, but I've always loved him. It's been getting even worse since he's been gone. I haven't told anyone about this, but what hurts me the most is knowing that before our last mission, he tried to tell me something…something important. I need to know Abby, did he feel the same way about me?"

Abigail sighed and leaned back in her chair as Kuki waited for her answer. She knew how Kuki would feel once she told her the answer. It was a good five minutes before Abby responded.

"All right," she said, "You want to know the truth?" Kuki nodded.

"Well the truth is…he did love you…a lot. The boy actually came to me one day and asked me to help him get his mind straight. He was absolutely crazy about you."

Kuki looked down at her cocoa. She felt the tears begin to form in her eyes.

"He wasn't a coward though that's for sure; one of the bravest guys I've seen," added Abby. "It's just a shame he never got the chance to tell you sooner."

Kuki's heart sank and she kept her focus on her hot cocoa mug. A few tears fell and landed in the creamy chocolate.

"I don't think I can bare the trip to Australia now," sobbed Kuki.

Abby leaned forward and placed her hand on Kuki's to comfort her.

"Don't worry. I'm sure you'll have a great time," said Abby trying to cheer her up. "A vacation is just the thing you need, and with Nigel, Hoagie, and me going it's gonna be one heck of a party!"

Kuki turned her focus back to the outside world.

_One can only hope…_

**Author's Note:** If any of you were confused from the seasons here, this is actually the way the world works. While it's winter in the US, it's summer in Australia. Just clarifying


	4. Old Friends New Problems

**Chapter 4: Old Friends New Problems**

Kuki and the gang were exhausted; they had been awake for nearly twenty-four hours now and had a serious case of jet lag. They had finally arrived at their hotel in Australia, but only after a fourteen hour flight and an hour drive from the airport. Nigel was the only one who had actually been able to sleep for a little while on the plane, so he got out of the van and went to front desk to check in.

When he returned, Nigel gave everyone a card key to get into their rooms. There were only two rooms; Hoagie and Nigel would share one and Kuki and Abby would share the other. Everyone took their card key, got their luggage out of the van, and then slowly dragged themselves up to their rooms and into bed. Everyone was asleep once they hit the pillows.

* * *

Wally awoke the next morning at around 9:00 AM and got out of bed. He slowly got dressed, slipping on some jeans, tennis shoes, and a blue t-shirt and then made his way into the kitchen. He snatched the remote off the couch and turned on the T.V. as he passed by his living room. The news was on but he didn't really care anyway. He grabbed a bowl, fixed up some cereal, and sat down on his couch to watch the news while he ate.

"We come to you live from Coral Beach," announced the news reporter. "As you may have noticed behind me, it is unusually crowded here at Seaside Resorts. This is due to the overall increase in tourist population this year. Status had shown that there are three times as many tourists since that of last year. So far it's been good news to the store owners, but bad news to the everyday locals. Now back to you Ricky."

Wally shook his head in disgust; he hated tourists, especially when there were way too many of them. How in the world was he going to get to surf now without slamming into some bonehead who wasn't paying attention? Well, at least it would be easier making money now that there were three times as many stupid people walking around.

Once he had finished his breakfast, Wally walked back into the kitchen and put his bowl into the dishwasher. He was just about to head out his front door when his phone rang. He quickly hurried over to answer it.

"Wally! Get your butt down here now! There are a ton of idiots walking around and business is going great; we're making a killer load!" Josh's yelled into the phone. Wally could hear all the commotion from the people in the background.

"I don't know, maybe later," answered Wally. "I just got up and not really in the mood."

"All right, no worries mate. We'll save you a third of the profits anyway," said Josh.

"Thanks," said Wally. He hung up the phone, grabbed his surf board, and headed out to the water.

* * *

Kuki and the gang had all gotten up, eaten breakfast, and were all ready to hit the beach. Nigel, however, wanted to go explore the town more than spend time in the sand.

"Comon Nigel, you need to some time to relax at the beach," begged Hoagie.

"Yeah, and I'm sure that once you're there you'll have a blast," added Abby.

Nigel sighed and looked at the begging faces of his friends. "You won't give up until I give in will you?" he asked. They all shook their heads and smiled.

"Well….alright, I'll go," he sighed, "but you can't force me to do anything while we're there. Got it?"

"You got it chief," saluted Hoagie, and with that, everyone hurried to the elevator.

Since their hotel wasn't far from the beach, the four friends didn't mind walking. They made their way down the pathway, but when they got to the parking lot, they were cut off by some unwanted company, two brown haired boys who were apparently trying to scam tourists for easy cash.

"Hey there, my name's Josh. May I interest you in some skin tan lotion? It's ten times better than the stuff found in the stores."

"Uh, no thanks," said Nigel as he stepped forward to push past the two frauds.

"Hold on their mate," said Josh, blocking Nigel's path, "I don't think I can let you pass unless you buy some lotion first."

"And why is that?"questioned Nigel.

"Because…well the suns very warm here in Australia….and we uh wouldn't want you to burn up," answered Buck.

Josh hit his friend in the gut to get him to shut up. Then, he continued on with his sale.

"Even if I were to allow you on the beach without purchasing a bottle, I would make your visit here very unpleasant. So one way or another, you lose. I suggest you take the easy way out and just simply buy some lotion."

Suddenly, Kuki spoke up.

"Listen buddy, we're in no mood to deal with scammers like you two. I came here to get my mind off of things and you are making it way more difficult than it needs to be," she threatened.

Abby was about to warn Josh what he was in for, knowing Kuki's temper, but stopped when she noticed a black jeep pull into the parking lot and park right next to Josh's truck. Everyone's attention turned to see who stepped out of the jeep. However, the stranger paid no attention to who he thought were just meaningless tourists.

"Hey guys. How are sales goin?" Wally asked, greeting Josh and Buck.

"You're just in time mate," whispered Josh. "These losers think they own the place. Try to knock some sense into them will ya?"

Wally turned to face the tourists, but he turned pale and nearly dropped dead when he saw who stood before him. They were his old friends, his old team. He couldn't believe it. A moment of silence passed as Nigel and the group stared back at him in shock. They couldn't believe it either.

"Yo Wally! Hello?" Buck waved his hand in front of Wally's face to snap him back to reality. Wally waved away Buck's hand and took a step forward toward his old friends.

"So um…hey guys…what are you doing in Australia?" he asked nervously.

"You know these people!" asked Josh.

Wally turned back to face him. "Well…ya…they were my friends back in the states," he said.

"If we were you're friends you wouldn't have done that to us Wally," said Nigel crossing his arms. "We were devastated. We spent months searching for you."

"Nigel even requested a larger search party and more time to look for you after everyone else had given up," said Abby cutting in.

Wally choked. He didn't know how to explain it to them. How could he? Suddenly, a small voice caught his attention.

"Wally? Is that really you?"

Wally immediately recognized the voice as the jet black haired girl stepped out from behind Abby and Hoagie.

"Kuki…"

She had tears in her eyes. Wally took a step to approach her, but before he could say another word, Kuki shoved him so hard it knocked the wind out of him. Wally stared back at her, but knew he deserved it.

"Kuki let me explain…"

Kuki turned her back to him and went to go stand next to Abby, with her back still turned. Abby turned to Wally.

"You hurt all of us Wally, some of us a little more than others. Do you even realize how many people you hurt that day?"

Wally hung his head in shame."Well I thought you wouldn't have cared as much if I had…I figured it would be better if…"

"Wouldn't have cared! Wally we were your best friends," answered Hoagie. "We all thought we had lost you forever."

Wally's heart sank. He could never tell them the real reason he did what he did. He looked down at Kuki, who was now looking back at him with tears in her eyes.

"Kuki I…I'm sorry. I…I never thought I would cause you this much pain," Wally stuttered as he tried to make up some excuse. "I did it with the best intentions."

"You never thought you would cause me pain!" shouted Kuki through her tears. "You don't get it Wally! I loved you! I've loved you since the day I met you! You have no idea how much it hurts to have someone disappear for eleven years, then show up again like they are back from the dead and expect you to believe they left with the best intentions!"

With that final word she retreated back up the pathway and towards the hotel. Wally stood there dumbfounded. Had he heard what he thought he'd heard? He looked around at his former friends, and they looked back at him in disgust.

Josh and Buck were feeling pretty confused right about now. They decided now was the time for them to leave.

"Listen mate, Buck and I were thinkin' that we should go down to the beach seein' business might be better over in that area," said Josh, and without another word, he and Buck scurried to Josh's truck and drove off, leaving Wally alone to do some explaining.


	5. Truth Before Sundown

**Chapter 5: Truth Before Sundown**

Wally remained silent and became more nervous with each growing second as all of his old friends surrounded him with their disappointed glares. They were not happy with him one bit and demanded a good explanation for his actions. Wally didn't feel comfortable in telling them the truth. He wanted to personally tell Kuki before the rest of them. It was only right that she would be the first to know why he had lied to her. Wally rubbed the back of his neck and looked away from his three friends as he thought of a way to work the situation out. However, Abby was growing impatient.

"Well are you gonna explain everything to us or are you jus' gonna stand there?" she asked anxiously. After a good five minutes of thought, Wally finally came to a solution.

"Uh…listen guys, it's nothing against you or anything, but I really think I need should tell Kuki the truth first," he said uneasily.

"What! Why?" asked Hoagie angrily.

"She deserves to be the first to know," answered Wally as he lowered his eyes to the pavement. There was a moment of silence, but then Nigel spoke out.

"All right you can tell her first," said Nigel as he started to head back up the pathway to the hotel "I'll just take you up the rooms and we can all..."

"No wait," Wally called after him. Nigel stopped walking and turned back to face him.

"I really need to tell her alone," explained Wally. Nigel's expression remained disgruntled for a second, but then he finally accepted Wally's reasoning.

"I see," he said raising an eyebrow. "Well that's no problem. You can tell us when you're ready I guess."

Wally sighed in relief. He could breathe a little easier now that some of the pressure was gone.

"Comon guys, lets hit the beach," said Hoagie as he started towards the water; Abby and Nigel followed.

Wally watched Hoagie and Abby race to the ocean, but was alerted of Nigel's presence as a hand was placed on Wally's shoulder.

"Room 37, fourth floor," said Nigel, "and don't be so nervous."

"How can I not?" asked Wally. "Everyone is pretty angry with me."

"Don't worry; I know that you must have a really good explanation for what you did. Everyone knows about you and Kuki. I know that you would never lie to her like that unless you had a very good reason," comforted Nigel.

"Thanks mate," said Wally.

"Hey what are friends for?" added Nigel before he continued on his way to the beach.

"By the way," Wally yelled out after him, "tell Hoagie and Abby the best surf is on the left side!" After he watched Nigel go, Wally made his way out of the parking lot and headed up to the hotel.

_How well will she take it? Will she believe me? If she does believe me will she ever want to talk to me again?_

Wally was so lost in thought that before he knew it he had reached the hotel. He continued inside the lobby and straight to the elevator. He pushed the small up-button and the doors of the elevator opened with a soft 'ding'. Then, he pushed the button for the fourth floor and waited patiently as the doors closed and the elevator slowly crept upward. Suddenly, an idea struck him.

_I could take her out to dinner! It might make her feel better, and it wouldn't be so awkward in telling her the truth. It's perfect!_

He casually made his way to room 37 thinking about his clever plan. He eagerly knocked on the door and awaited Kuki's presence. There was no answer, which came as no surprise to him. He knocked again, this time slightly harder.

"Kuki, it's me Wally. I really want to talk to you," said Wally.

There was still no response.

"Please Kuki," Wally begged.

To Wally's surprise, the door was unlocked and the handle was turned. When it finally opened, Wally could see Kuki standing in the doorway. She looked up at him with the door opened only wide enough for her head to fit through. Wally could also see the wet trails the tears had left from her crying. His heart sank at the sight of her.

"What do you want," she whimpered.

"Can I come in?" he asked.

She hesitated, but slowly opened the door and allowed him to enter. Wally walked into the room and shut the door behind him. Then, he walked over to the bed, sat down, and sighed.

"Kuki, I'm sorry I hurt you, but I had a good reason. You have to believe me."

"_Right_, like the time when we were kids and you thought you killed my pet fish! You always have a "good" reason for everything Wally," said Kuki sobbing. She folded her arms across her chest and turned away from him.

"Look, why don't ya come to dinner with me tonight? I wanted to apologize to you, and while were there I can even tell you the real reason why I had to fake my own death," Wally offered. "I know a great place out by the water."

Kuki turned back toward him, but only halfway and still avoiding his eyes. She seemed to be thinking over the scenario carefully. Wally held his breath while he waited for the answer. Finally, after what seemed like ages to him, Kuki answered.

"Okay, I'll go," she said, "but you have to promise to tell the whole truth."

Wally sighed in relief. "I Promise," he said. "Besides, I've nothing to hide from you anymore."

* * *

Later that day, around 6:00 P.M., Wally drove over to the hotel, picked up Kuki, and the two of them headed off to the restaurant. It was a quiet ride for the most part and Kuki continued to avoid eye contact. Wally felt slightly uncomfortable with the silence, but Kuki didn't seem to care.

Once they got to their destination, they hurried inside to beat the dinner rush. Even if she didn't want to admit it, she was astonished at the restaurant's atmosphere. It was a medium sized hut placed about 50 yards from the waterside. The walls were covered with a number of "Aussie" signs and other miscellaneous things while the pillars had carving designs of outback animals in them. The most astonishing fixations, however, were the large glass tanks with real live alligators in them! They were not yet adult alligators and were behind thick safety glass, but they still looked deadly.

Wally and Kuki were seated at the table closest to the ocean. He had been able to specially reserve it since he had given the owner's son surfing lessons. The pair was given their menus and the waiter wrote down their drinks. Wally already knew what he was going to eat, but tried to look as if he was reading the menu. Instead, he found himself paying more attention to Kuki who was glowing in the dazzling afternoon sun. Kuki looked up from her menu for a brief second and caught Wally's eye, but Wally quickly looked away and blushed. Kuki smiled to herself and went back to choosing her meal.

Eventually, the waiter came back to take their order and bring their drinks to them. Once he left, Kuki broke the silence.

"So, what's the truth Wally?" she asked.

"Huh?" asked Wally inattentively.

"The whole reason you brought me here," answered Kuki. "You aren't going to try and avoid the subject are you?"

"No of course not," started Wally as he snapped back to attention. He cleared his throat before beginning his story. "Well, do you remember that urgent mission before I left? You know the one that happened right before the mission with the drowning incident?"

"Yes," answered Kuki solemnly.

"Well, on that mission I was caught off guard by the Delightful Children. They told me that I was moving to Australia the next day, but for some reason they didn't want the word to get out and told me to keep quiet about it," explained Wally.

"And what did they say would happen if you didn't?" asked Kuki.

Wally looked up into her eyes. "They said…well…"

Kuki sat patiently while waiting for an answer. Wally reached over and tightly held her hand in his.

"They said they would hurt you. I could never have lived with myself in knowing that it was my fault you got hurt."

Kuki was stunned. She immediately felt ashamed for yelling at him earlier.

"You went through all that, just to protect me?" she asked, "but why?"

Wally was about to answer her, but the food arrived and he decided to let it go for now. Kuki was slightly annoyed that she hadn't gotten an answer right then, but decided that it wasn't worth fussing over and she should just let him tell her when he was ready.

* * *

After dinner, Wally drove Kuki back to his place. He parked the jeep and went inside to put the keys in the house. Kuki had just gotten out of the jeep when he returned.

"Hey it's a nice sunset," said Wally, "Want to go for a walk on the beach?"

Kuki smiled as she took his hand, making him feel a little nervous.

"Sure, just hurry up before the sun goes down. I know how slow you can be," she joked.

They walked barefoot together in the soft white sand until the sun started to sink beneath the horizon. They had only gone on a short walk, but their time together seemed endless. Kuki decided she should bring up the big question again.

"So Wally, why _did_ you go through all that trouble to save me?" she asked.

Wally stopped walking, turned to face her, and sighed.

"There has been something I have wanted to tell you for the longest time. I just couldn't ever build up enough courage to get it out," said Wally.

"What?" she asked.

Wally took a deep breath.

"I love you Kuki Sanban," he said. "I've always loved you, ever since the moment I met you."

Kuki smiled and hugged him so tightly he was sure she'd suffocate him. When she finally let go she looked up into his eyes.

"I love you too Wally," she said, "and I'm still a little mad at you for what you did, but I'm so happy you're alive. I don't know how much longer I could have lasted without you. Eleven years is too long to wait."

Wally pulled Kuki closer, bringing them together. She could feel the warmth and comfort of his body and could hear his heavy heartbeat beneath his muscular chest. She wrapped her arms around his neck and brought her lips up to meet his. Wally placed his hands around her and they remained locked in each other's arms as the sun slowly sank beneath the horizon.


	6. A Day in Australia

**Chapter 6: A Day in Australia**

Kuki awoke to the morning sun gently beaming through Wally's bedroom window. She slowly opened her eyelids and sat up to stretch. After a long yawn, she glanced at the alarm clock; 9:00 A.M. Kuki yawned again and laid back down. She reached out to the other side of the bed, but, to her horror, discovered that Wally was missing.

"_He must have already gotten up and left_," she thought with a few years coming to her eyes. "_I can't believe how stupid I am_. _But would he really just treat me as a one night stand after all he's put me through_?"

In the back of her mind she knew Wally could never do that to her, but she had to know for sure. To prove herself wrong, she hopped out of bed, got dressed, and hurried to the front door to see if Wally's jeep was still parked outside. She was about to turn the handle on the doorknob when the wooden door swung open, revealing a very handsome Wally standing in his dark blue swim trunks and carrying his surf board. He was surprised to see Kuki at the door and noticed her shocked/hurt expression. He smiled.

"What? Thought I left ya?" teased Wally.

Kuki sighed and smiled, knowing that everything was still right in the world.

"Look, why don't you go and get your swimsuit," said Wally. "I wanna take you somewhere pretty special." Kuki nodded and quickly rushed back inside to change while Wally climbed into his jeep waiting for her return. When she got back, she got into the passenger's seat and Wally started the engine.

"So where are we going?" asked Kuki.

"If I told you it wouldn't be a secret would it," replied Wally, smiling.

* * *

When they arrived at their destination, Wally hopped out of the jeep and grabbed two surf boards. "Here, you can use this one," he said handing Kuki the surfboard with two green stripes going down the middle. "That's a starter board. It should be easier for you to handle."

Kuki gave him a smug look, but took her board and started running to the water.

"Last one out there buys lunch!" she called back to him.

"Hey no fair gettin' a head start!" he joked as he raced to beat her to the water.

* * *

Three hours later, Kuki and Wally took a break from the surf floating loosely together on their surfboards drifting above the two foot deep water. The secret beach was the most beautiful spot in the city. The sand was a relaxing shade of tannish-white and the water was clear and crystal blue. The surf was amazing and there wasn't even a single rock in sight.

"So why weren't you and the others decommissioned?" Wally asked to bring up a topic.

Kuki felt her muscles tense, but she quickly relaxed them. She still had a reaction to the question even though now she knew Wally was alive.

"Well," she replied, "after your 'death' we were excused from being decommissioned for life. They said that we shouldn't have to forget you and get our minds erased. It didn't seem right to them, so they let us go."

"Oh," said Wally. "So did you ever join the Teens Next Door?"

"No, we just all went on with our lives," said Kuki. "Well at least Nigel, Hoagie, and Abby did."

"What do ya mean?" asked Wally sitting up on his board. He had sensed the depressed undertone in her voice. Kuki sat up on her board and became silent. Wally waited patiently for her to answer. When she didn't answer he dropped into the shallow water, which only went up to his waist, and stood in front of Kuki. He placed his hands on her shoulders to comfort her.

"Kuki, you know you can tell me anything."

Kuki finally looked up at him, a few tears in her eyes. "I just couldn't stand the fact that you were really gone. I really missed you," she said as she reached out for him and buried her face in his chest. Wally embraced her in hoped of comforting her while she told her story. "I just couldn't move on in life," she continued. "I couldn't help but linger back, hoping you would return someday, even if I knew it would never happen. For eleven years Abby told me I needed to go out and see other people. I tried it, but it never worked. It just never felt right."

Wally tried to imagine what life must have been like for her, but his thoughts were cut short by the sound of a familiar truck engine pulling up. Wally turned around to see if it was who he thought it was. Unfortunately, he was right. He grabbed Kuki's arm to get her attention.

"Kuk, we need to leave," he said grimly. Kuki sat up and looked at him in confusion."Why? What's wrong?" she asked.

Wally pointed at Josh and Buck who were just stepping out of Josh's truck. "That's why," he said. Wally and Kuki stood up and carried their boards to shore. Wally was greeted by his friends with a show of disapproval. He tried to ignore them and urged Kuki toward the jeep.

"So Wally, what's this we hear about you breakin' your promise to your two best friends, you trader?" mocked Josh. "Your just gonna bring all your lame tourist friends for lessons in our secret spot now aren't ya?"

Wally ignored him. Instead of making eye contact he simply strode up to his jeep and tossed the surfboards in the back, but Josh wouldn't let him go so easily.

"Why don't ya turn around and face me so I can knock out whatever brains you have left in that hollow head of yours? Or maybe I should just see what I can do for your little tourist friend here," said Josh, who began approaching Kuki.

Before Josh realized he had just made an incredibly stupid move, Wally immediately whipped around and punched him hard in the gut. Josh fell to the ground, clenching his stomach in pain.

"You're not laying a finger on her! You got that?" threatened Wally. He was angry. He had his hands tightened in fists, and his stance indicated that he was ready for combat. His skills in the Kids Next Door had certainly not gone to waste.

Wally knew Josh was going to try his best to make Wally regret punching him. Holding nothing back, Josh leapt at Wally and pinned him to the ground. He started punching him hard in the chest, but Wally fought back by raising another fist and punching Josh in his chin, giving him the uppercut. Josh fell backward and Wally turned the tables by getting on top on him and pinning him down.

Wally, knowing he was winning the fight, was just about to beat the living tar out of his ex-best friend, but was suddenly forced to hold back when Kuki stopped him by grabbing his arm.

"Let him go Wally," she begged. "We'll just go."

Wally looked back at Josh, who now seemed amused at Kuki's suggestion.

"Yeh Wally, you better listen to the little girl," mocked Josh with a smirk.

Wally scowled at Josh, but he knew that his time with Kuki was far more valuable than some stupid fight. He let go of his pride and let Josh go. He walked back to his jeep, pulled out a shirt from the back, and slipped it on. Then, he helped Kuki climb in, went over to the driver's side, and pulled himself in too.

Josh rose up from off the ground and brushed himself off. "That's it? Your just gonna walk away?" he taunted. "You're such a wuss! I could cream you any day and you know it!"

Wally ignored him and started up the engine, while trying to tolerate the pain in his chest where Josh had hit him. He drove back up to the main road without looking back.

* * *

Wally drove up to a small café and parked in the parking lot. He and Kuki got out and went inside together.

"So are ya hungry?" asked Wally in a friendly tone, breaking the silence. "After all you beat me to the water and you said last one buys lunch."

"I'm famished," answered Kuki, "but are you sure you're okay. I mean your friend beat you pretty hard. Is your friendship ruined because of me."

"I'm fine," said Wally, "and don't worry about it. They just hate all tourists. I'm sure once I explain things to them everything will be fine. He reached into his wallet and pulled out some cash. "Here take this and buy yourself something to eat. I'm going to go sit down."

He handed Kuki the money, then made his way to the nearest available table and sunk down in one of the cold metal chairs. He folded his arms across the table and rested his head on them. He stared out the café window and watched the cars drive by as he waited for Kuki to join him. She eventually returned with a sandwich and a soda. She took a quick bite, but couldn't help but notice Wally's gloomy mood.

"What's the matter Wally?" she asked after swallowing a mouthful. "Are you sure you don't want something to eat."

"I'm fine," Wally replied looking away from her. "Besides, it's nothing."

"Well it's gotta be something silly, otherwise you wouldn't act so depressed."

"No really it's nothing."

"I'll bet you're just hungry! Here, you can have the other half of my sandwich if you want," she said, holding it up and waving it in front of him. She tried her best to cheer him up. "Come on, you know it will make you feel better."

Wally grunted and accepted the half sandwich. Kuki smiled as he took a bite. "See, feel better now?" she asked.

"Yeh I guess," he replied as he looked up at her smile. _It_ was what had really made him feel better. He had to admit though, she was persuasive.

* * *

After lunch, Kuki and Wally spent the rest of their day exploring the town. Wally didn't drive Kuki back to the hotel until 10:00 that night. When he dropped her off, she was just about to leave him, but she stopped and turned to ask him something important.

"Wally, was it my fault that you got in that fight with your friends?" she asked. Wally was surprised at her concern, but decided to give a truthful answer.

"It wasn't your fault at all Kuki," said Wally. "I was the one who broke my promise to them. I brought you to the spot that I swore never to tell a soul about. I probably should have kept my promise, but none of it could ever be your fault."

Kuki nodded. She said her goodbyes to Wally and game him one last kiss before he drove away. Kuki watched him go and then turned to enter the hotel lobby, but to her surprise someone was waiting for her at the entrance. It was none other than her good friend, Abigail Lincoln.

"Okay girl, spill," demanded Abby smiling. "Where were you last night?"

Kuki pretended to play dumb to avoid awkward conversation. "I don't know what you mean. Besides I'm kinda tired. I should probably be getting to bed, she said giving a fake yawn.

Abby wasn't convinced. She raised an eyebrow and looked Kuki straight in the eye. Kuki gave a nervous smile, but realized she wasn't ever going to fool Abby, not even if her life depended on it. She sighed. "Ok….so I spent the night at his house, then we spent the day together today. Is that _all_ you want to know?"

Abby smiled. "Close enough," she smirked, and she side-stepped to allow an open path for Kuki to enter the lobby. "You can give me all the juicy details later."

Kuki walked with Abby to their rooms, and the two of them continued on to bed.


	7. Amber the Local

**Chapter 7: Amber the Local**

Wally was sitting out on his front porch allowing the cool ocean breeze to sweep over him. He had just returned home from taking Kuki back to the hotel and while his body was exhausted, he felt like he was on Cloud 9. His body had been tired out, but he wasn't ready to go to bed just yet. Instead, he sat on the cold, hard concrete gazing up at the sparkling night sky.

Minutes passed, but it wasn't long until Wally heard the familiar engine of a large truck. He stared into the darkness and watched in disappointment as Josh and Buck drove up and got out of their vehicle. Wally groaned and buried his forehead in his hands. He had just begun to enjoy himself and was not in the mood to deal with these two. He stood up and turned to open his front door and retreat inside.

"Hold up there mate," Josh called after him. Wally froze unwillingly and continued to face the doorway. To Wally's surprise there seemed to be no threat in Josh's tone of voice. Curiosity took control, and Wally turned back around to face Josh and Buck.

"We're not here to harass you Wally. We just want to know what the deal was earlier," explained Josh.

"Yeh! Why are ya hangin' with tourists all of a sudden?" Buck added arrogantly. Josh nudged him in the side to remind him to be friendly. Wally opened his mouth and tried to say something, but then changed his mind and looked away from Josh. "Ya wouldn't understand," Wally mumbled while staring at the ground.

"Why wouldn't we?" asked Josh. "After all, we _are_ your best friends. Look, yeh don't even have to tell me, you can tell Buck for all I care."

"Ya mate, yeh know I can keep a secret," said Buck.

Wally rubbed the back of his neck nervously. He tried to think of some way to get himself out of this mess.

"Right, well...I uh…ya see it's complicated cuz…I….uh… Look I'm really tired. Can't we all just settle this in the morning?" said Wally gesturing a fake yawn.

Josh was not convinced. He was growing impatient and Wally's stubbornness was pushing him to the limit. "What about the girl then?" he asked.

Wally suddenly fell silent. He didn't have the courage to tell _them_ the truth. He would never hear the end of it. Three years from now and they would still be making wise-cracking jokes about how he ran around with a _tourist_. "What about her?" Wally asked.

"Oh come off it mate! You know damn well what about her! We're not _that_ stupid. I mean it's not everyday you take some random girl off to our secret surfing spot and then float around on your backs like a couple of sea otters!" exclaimed Buck.

"Ya and today we saw you with her at lunch. Spit it out already! What's the deal with you two? As if we didn't already know." demanded Josh.

"Look it's none of your business all right," said Wally. "You guys don't need to know."

That was the last straw. Josh had finally had enough. He approached Wally and shoved him to the ground. "Yeh, so much for trying to understand. Some friend you are," he snarled. Then, he turned, grabbed Buck's arm, and dragged him back to the truck. He was just about to start the truck and leave, but hesitated. The next few words that escaped his mouth left Wally standing expressionless and spirit broken.

"It's been eleven years Wally. You don't think she has someone _else_ waiting for her back home? You're just that nice Australian guy she met on vacation, nothing more. You don't think you'll be forgotten once her time here is up?"

With that said Josh started his truck's engine and backed out of Wally's dirt road entryway. As Wally watched his ex-best friends leave, he could feel the impact of reality slap him in the face. He couldn't stop the painful tears from forming in his eyes as he passed through the entry way and slammed the door behind him.

"_Josh makes a good point." _thought Wally. "_ Kuki's time here is limited. Eventually she's going to have to leave. Will I ever see her again after that?"_

After calming down a bit, Wally plopped himself down on his couch and switched on the news broadcast to get his mind off things. There was a report on about how tourists were slowly leaving and going home, which didn't help Wally at all. He immediately pressed the power button on the remote and purposely dropped it onto the floor as he stood up. Then he headed off to his bedroom, changed, climbed into bed, and fell asleep with a heavy heart.

* * *

Wally awoke the next morning to the sunlight shining through his bedroom window. He pulled himself out of bed, brushed his teeth, changed into his swimsuit, and headed out the front door for his morning surf. He was just about to rush out into the cold ocean water, but something caused him to hesitate. Out in the middle of the surf, was a beautiful young brunette in a pink bikini. Wally instantly became nervous. He was usually alone out on the water this early in the morning, but now this strange girl had shown up. Wally was just about to turn and go back inside, but he froze when he heard the stranger's voice call after him.

"What's the hurry possum, too shy to say hello?"

Wally turned around to face her. "Eh…no. Of course not," answered Wally. The girl stuck out her hand and Wally shook it just to avoid being rude.

"I'm Amber," she said. "What do ya say to a surfdown?"

"Um…sure. Last one out there gets eaten by a shark!" Wally shouted as he hurried to beat Amber to the water. After all she didn't seem to be a tourist and he couldn't resist a good competition.

Forty minutes later the contest was over. Unfortunately for Wally, Amber won.

"Man where did you learn to surf like that?" Wally asked as the two of them emerged onto the beach.

"Well I've lived here all my life. You must know right?" answered Amber.

"Actually no," said Wally.

"You mean you're not a local?" asked Amber, somewhat shocked.

"No, no I am a local," explained Wally. "I was born here, but then my family moved to the states and I grew up there. Then they decided to move back to Australia when I was eleven and well…here I am."

"Wow, that's really weird, me too," said Amber. "Hey, what's your name by the way?"

"My friends call me Wally."

"Well Wally, how about we get together sometime?"

Wally felt the little red flag fly up in his head, but then Josh's words began floating in his mind.

_But what if what Josh said was true? Could Kuki be playing me off? Has she really found someone other than me?_

Wally shook his head in disgust. _"No what am I thinking? I've known Kuki since we were kids. She would never betray me"_

"Uh listen Amber, I'm kinda already seein' someone," he said nervously.

"Oh, I understand," sighed Amber. "Just out of curiosity, what's her name?"

Wally hesitated. "Kuki Sanban," he said suspiciously.

Amber's eyes lit up. "Wow! Really? I went to the same high school as her!"

"Were you two good friends?" asked Wally surprisingly.

"Not really, I just knew who she was," answered Amber. "You do know that she isn't a local right?"

"Yeh I know," answered Wally gloomily.

"Well what if I asked you for your number anyway?" asked Amber. "You know just in case you ever want to try and beat me in another surfing competition."

Wally decided it couldn't hurt. He wasn't going to let her get close to him, but it was always nice to have a friend. He told her his number and she wrote it on her hand with a pen from her bag. After she was done writing, she put the pen back and picked up her bag.

"Well I gotta run," she said throwing her bag over her shoulder. "Later Wally, I call you sometime."

Wally watched her go. Her words buzzed around in his head over and over. "_You know_ _she's not a local right". _Wally couldn't help but feel the enormous amount of guilt compressed in his chest as he headed back up to get lunch.

**Author's note: **I apologize for the long delay everyone. March has been a busy month.


	8. Stranger in Black

**Chapter 8: Stranger in Black**

Kuki awoke to the bright sunlight beaming through her bedroom window. She opened her eyes and stretched her arms to get a feel for the morning comfort. She rolled over onto her side and glanced at the alarm clock, which read 10:00 A.M. Kuki climbed out of bed and made her way into the kitchen where she knew she would find Abby. Sure enough, Abby was there waiting for her by sipping a cup of coffee.

"Mornin' sleepy beauty," greeted Abby. "Sleep okay?"

"Ya I guess so," answered Kuki. "I didn't know you drank coffee."

Abby chuckled, "Ya I still do. Can you believe we used to think this stuff was used as a power source for adults?"

"I know, but in a way it still kinda is," chuckled Kuki as she continued into kitchen.

"There's still some eggs there if you want them," said Abby gesturing towards the frying pan. "I figured you'd be getting up soon so I made you some too."

Kuki thanked Abby, took the eggs on a plate, poured some orange juice, and sat down with Abby. Kuki had made it about halfway into her meal before Abby brought up business matters.

"You do know we still need to tell the others about Wally and why he pretended to be dead all this time," said Abby.

Kuki swallowed her last bite and took a sip of orange juice."I know," she sighed.

"Well we'd better get ready to go," said Abby. "I'm not sure if the guys have anything planned for today."

* * *

Once they were ready, Kuki and Abby made their way to Nigel and Hoagie's room to inform the boys of the news. After Kuki told them about Wally's reason for pretending to be dead and how it was all the Delightful Children's fault, the two boys sat in silence. Abby was slightly confused at their reaction.

"What's wrong?" she asked. She figured they would at least act a bit surprised.

Nigel shook his head. "I am shocked," he said, "but I just don't understand why the Delightful Children would go to so much trouble just to get rid of Wally," he explained. "It's not like he was _that_ huge of a threat."

"I know it doesn't make much since, but….." Abby was cut off by Nigel holding up his hand and silencing her.

"Wait a second," Nigel paused. He turned to Hoagie. "Hoagie, did you happen to notice any strange or unusual news broadcasts before the time Wally was gone?"

Hoagie tapped his finger on his skull trying to jolt his memory.

"Now that you mention it," he said, "there was a kid broadcast about a rumor that the Common Cold was planting a new disease in special bombs and was planning to launch them to every Kids Next Door base, but no one took it seriously because it was just a rumor. Besides, I was just a kid. Do you actually think I paid attention to the news?"

Nigel paced the floor back and forth trying to piece together the puzzle. Hoagie sat watching him in doubt.

"What does my story have anything to do with the Delightful Children anyway? It's not like it makes any since," said Hoagie.

"No don't you see, it makes perfect since," corrected Nigel. "At first when we thought we had defeated the Delightful Children for the final time, we were convinced it was true because nothing was happening. However, this could have all been a part of their plan. They needed to get rid of one of our operatives to create a distraction without us knowing it was them. While we were distracted, Father could have formed a research team to create a new disease which could be used to take over the world!"

"Oh I get it, biological warfare," said Hoagie, "but why out of all people choose Wally?"

Nigel thought for a moment, but his expression lit up once he realized the reason. He immediately turned and pointed directly at Kuki.

"You!" he said. "You were his weakness Kuki. Using you as a free hostage made him an easy target. That's why he pretended to kill himself off, to protect _you_. But now that he "exists" again, he could be in very great danger."

Kuki gasped. She quickly rushed to the phone sitting on the table, but Abby stopped her.

"I have to warn him," said Kuki begging Abby to let her go.

"I know," answered Abby, "but you will have to use one of the pay phones downstairs. The hotel room phones aren't wired for outside calls."

"Fine then," said Kuki. She left Abby and hurried to the elevator. When she reached the hotel lobby floor she raced up to the desk clerk to ask him where the pay phones were. He pointed to them over by the emergency exit. Kuki thanked the desk clerk and hurried over to the pay phones.

Kuki realized how crowded the hotel lobby was due to the amount of time it took her to reach the phones, but as soon as she reached her destination she ignored the commotion. She quickly reached into her pocket and struggled to pull out some change. Unfortunately she was ten cents short. Kuki looked around and asked random people passing by if they had any spare change. Eventually someone was kind enough to offer her some. It was a tall man dressed in black, and he looked like he could have worked in the casino down the hall. Kuki thought he looked kind of suspicious, but she was in a hurry so she took the money from him and thanked him for his generosity.

The man let her take the money, but he _didn't_ leave. Kuki found him very disturbing so she asked him if he would go away. The man shook his head.

"I'm afraid I can't do that," he said. Kuki felt a small ball of fear rise up within her stomach. "Why not?" she asked nervously.

The man didn't answer. Instead, he quickly grabbed Kuki and injected something into her arm. Kuki tried to scream but the man had clamped his hand over her mouth. Everything happened so fast that she felt the sharp pinch of the needle dig into her flesh before she could even try to get away. Before she knew it, she was out cold.

The man carried her with him out of the emergency exit doors, setting off the alarm. He ran to a nearby truck, loaded her into it, and was off in a flash. Everyone in the lobby had heard the alarm go off, but everyone though it was for a fire. No one noticed a young girl get kidnapped by a group of strangers.


	9. Friend or Extremely Dangerous Foe

**Chapter 9: Friend…or Extremely Dangerous Foe?**

After going out for a most satisfying lunch, Wally arrived back home at about one in the afternoon. He climbed out of his jeep and continued on to his front door. He separated out his house key from his other keys and unlocked the entry way to his small home. Upon walking into his kitchen, he tossed his keys onto the counter and went straight to his refrigerator for a drink. After he poured himself a glass of water he made his way to the T.V. On his way to the couch a blinking red light caught his eye, and he turned toward it. Apparently his answering machine had picked up a message while he was out. He leaned over, pressed the play button, and the message began.

"Hey Wally it's me Amber," started the message. Wally rolled his eyes knowing that he wasn't surprised. Still, the message continued.

"I know we only met this morning, but I thought I would like to get to know you a little better. I thought we could meet under the Crystal Beach Pier at two for a walk on the beach. If you're interested you can call me on my cell at 571-7829. Hope to hear from you."

The message ended. Wally didn't know what to do. He picked up the phone and was about to dial, but the amount of guilt he had piled up inside him was stopping him. He slammed the phone back down.

"_No! What am I thinking? How could I possibly betray Kuki? I love her. I've always loved her, and now that she's finally mine I'm having doubts that she loves me back? That I'm just her vacation boy! No I won't do it. Kuki doesn't deserve that."_ Wally made up his mind. _"I'll call Amber and tell her I'll go meet her, but just as friends. This isn't going to go anywhere that she wants it to."_

Wally picked up the phone and dialed Amber's number. He heard it ring a few times, but finally someone picked it up.

"Hello?" answered a voice on the other line.

"Hey Amber it's me, Wally," said Wally.

"Oh hey!" said Amber excitingly. "So you decided to come to the beach with me?"

"Ya I'm coming," said Wally, "but listen Amber, before you jump to conclusions there's something you need to…"

"Okay great I'll meet you there in twenty," said Amber and with that the line was dead.

Wally stood dumbfounded with the phone still to his ear, listening to the hum of the dead line as he hesitated. "Well, that didn't exactly go as planned," he said. He finally put the phone back on the receiver, grabbed his keys, and headed out to his jeep.

* * *

Twenty minutes later Wally pulled into the parking lot next to Crystal Beach. He noticed Amber standing just under the pier in a light brown shirt and jean shorts. He parked his jeep, got out, and started walking toward her. When he finally made his way over the tons of twigs scattered throughout the sand and all of the small kids playing tag, Amber greeted him with a simple hand shake.

After Amber let go of his hand, Wally prepared himself to speak his mind. But before Wally could speak, Amber grabbed his arm and urged him to follow her under the pier.

"Come on there's something I really wanted to show you," she said. Wally sighed and followed her under the pier. He felt the warm sun be replaced by the cool shade and gentle breeze.

"So what was it ya want to show me Amber?" asked Wally.

Amber smiled playfully and drew her hand up to gently meet the side of Wally's cheek. Wally already knew this was going too far.

"Amber I don't…"

Amber's lips met Wally's own and she dragged him into the most passionate kiss he had ever experienced in his entire life. He was so confused and wanted to pull away immediately, but it was like he was stunned and was desperately trying to figure out where this girl had learned to kiss the way she did. Wally couldn't help but melt into her power as he felt his body lower to the ground, and pretty soon she was lying right on top of him.

After a few minutes Wally was able to regain his thoughts. He knew what he was doing was wrong and prepared himself to pull away. But before he could even make an attempt, he felt Amber pull a sharp needle out from his skin. Suddenly Wally realized it wasn't the kiss that had caused him to fall to the ground, Amber had injected him with some sort of drug. Wally tried to struggle for control, but could only stay conscious for a few seconds. The last thing he saw was Amber breaking away from the devastating kiss.

* * *

Wally slowly awoke, dazed and confused. He opened his eyes, but failed to gather a clear image from them due to his sleepy state. It wasn't long before he realized that his arms had been tied behind his back to a chair, and each of his legs was tied to a chair leg. He attempted to escape his binds, but his body failed to respond. Now, fully awake, Wally realized that he had been temporarily paralyzed from the neck down.

With his vision slowly returning he was able to make out a small group of people standing before him. His eyes met with the shortest of the five, a blond haired, blue eyed man. Just that one observation made him realize that he was now in the hands of the grown Delightful Children from Down the Lane.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Wallabee Beatles," said the five young adults altogether.

"What do you bastards want with me!" demanded Wally.

The Delightful Adults didn't reply. Instead, they took a few steps backward and let another mysterious foe step into Wally's view.

Wally was shocked when he saw who it was.

"Amber!" he shouted. "You're behind this!" Amber chuckled at Wally's remark.

"You were way too easy," she said while beginning to circle him. "I was surprised how simple it was to pull you into that moment. You didn't even attempt to fight back. I suppose you thought I was falling in love with you."

"Ya you wish!" Wally spat back at her. He tried to look brave on the outside, but inside he felt like crap for betraying Kuki like that. Amber did trick him, but he _still_ had had a chance to fight back. "So what do you want with me?"

The Delightful Adults cut in before Amber could explain anything, but she didn't really mind it. Instead she stood aside and watched Wally in his misery. "You shouldn't be so hot-headed Wallabee," they said cunningly. "After all you broke our deal."

"What deal?" asked Wally stupidly.

"Don't play dumb! You know exactly what we're talking about," they said. "But just in case you have forgotten the agreements, we will lay them out for you."

Wally listened as they explained every tiny detail about what he had agreed to do to save Kuki's life so very long ago.

"Just why exactly did you want me to disappear so badly?" asked Wally curiously.

"Well, since our beloved father was sent to prison, he had developed an ingenious plan to take over the world," they explained. "All we had to do was get you out of the way to create a distraction to give us time to create a new disease in which we could use to control the world! And since you already had a weakness, you were the easiest one to control."

Wally sneered, "So Father finally got what he deserved; serves him right."

"You really should choose your words carefully," warned the Delightful Adults bitterly.

"Oh ya, give me one reason why I should!" demanded Wally.

The five of them gave and evil smile and turned to Amber. She nodded, turned, and left the room in silence. Wally watched impatiently for her return. When she _did_ return, Wally's heart sank as he saw Amber drag Kuki, gagged and bruised, to a chair and tie her up as well. Kuki slowly lifted her head and looked up into Wally's eyes, begging him to save her. Wally felt her miserable eyes feed their way into his sunken heart.


	10. The Incredible Rescue

**Chapter 10: The Incredible Rescue**

"What do you want with her? Let her go!" demanded Wally angrily.

"I'm afraid we can't do that Wallabee," said the Delightful adults. "You broke the deal yourself, and if you recall, that rewards us to do whatever we please with your girlfriend here."

They pressed a button on a small remote control and a wall of torture devices emerged from the ground. This certainly wasn't a child's game anymore.

"Nice collection isn't it," smirked the Delightful adults. "Amber, take your pick, whatever you're in the mood to use today."

Wally fought with all his strength to get free, but it was useless. He was worn out and the bounds that strapped him to the chair restricted him from any movement.

Amber grabbed a few devices from the assortment and slowly headed over to Kuki, who was trembling with fear.

"Stop!" shouted Wally. "Don't even think of laying a hand on her!"

Amber stopped approaching Kuki, turned to face Wally, and smiled, causing a chill to run down his spine. She started advancing toward him instead.

"And what are you going to do about it?" taunted Amber. She noticed how miserable he was tied to the chair. "What's the matter? Can't stand feeling so helpless? Oh by the way, do you remember anything about that moment that happened between us under the pier earlier?"

Wally was furious. He could also sense the paralysis drug warring off.

"It was never like that Amber and you know it!" he spat back.

"Oh really?" questioned Amber. She held out a remote, pressed a button, and a giant video screen appeared. She then pressed another button, which revealed a video of her and Wally kissing under the pier.

"Now what do you say to that?" she asked playfully.

Wally looked over at Kuki, who was looking back at him in total shock. He could tell she felt betrayed, and he felt ashamed for betraying her trust. He hated to see her so miserable. Amber walked over and took off the rope wrapped around Kuki mouth.

"So what do you have to say about that?" Amber asked Kuki, smirking.

Kuki was devastated. She looked up at Wally with tears in her eyes.

"Is this really true?" she asked. Her voice was small and frightened.

Before he could respond, Wally noticed Amber holding up one of the torture devices. Wally realized what Amber was after. She wanted him to lie, and if he didn't, she would just inflict more pain on Kuki than she would have originally done. Wally sighed in defeat.

"It's true," he mumbled.

Wally couldn't bring himself to look up and see Kuki's expression. He felt too ashamed and worthless.

The Delightful adults were enjoying every minute of Wally's suffering. They ordered Amber to continue with her business while they concentrated on theirs.

Kuki watched in terror as Amber slowly approached her with the torture device. It almost looked like a scalpel, but a lot sharper and there were two blades attached. Kuki's heart pounded faster and faster as the blade drew nearer. She tried to struggle for freedom even thought she knew it was completely useless. She looked back at Wally one last time, begging him with her eyes to save her from this nightmare, even though she knew there was nothing he could do to help her.

Wally continued to sulk in his chair, not daring to look up and watch the one person he had loved his whole life about to be destroyed right before his eyes. It was bad enough he would have to listen to her screams. He wished more than anything he could be back on the beach with her, teaching her to surf or enjoying the sunset together. If given the chance he would have enjoyed sharing the rest of his life with her, but now his dreams were destroyed. There was nothing more he could do.

"I'm sorry Kuki," he cried miserably. "I'm so sorry."

Amber had now brought the device within an inch's distance of Kuki's delicate flesh. Kuki could feel its white hot blade drawing closer and closer to her. She closed her eyes and prepared herself for her painful treatment.

Suddenly, there was a load crash, and the roof burst open. An army of twenty men in uniform slid down helicopter ropes while another thirty or forty burst through the doorways, causing dust to fly everywhere.

"Freeze! Drop your weapons!" yelled the soldiers as they aimed their rifles at Amber and the Delightful adults. Amber immediately dropped the blade and put her hands over her head. The delightful adults scowled and put their hands up as well.

Two soldiers hurried over and untied Wally and Kuki. The second she was free Kuki ran over to Wally and buried her face in his chest. Wally hugged her back trying to comfort her.

"Wally I was so scared," she cried clinging to him as if he would be torn away from her at any second.

"Don't worry," comforted Wally, "we're safe now. It's gonna be alright."

* * *

Kuki and Wally watched as the Delightful adults and Amber were all handcuffed and shoved into a police van.

"Enjoy prison mates," taunted Wally. "Be sure to tell Father I said hi."

"We swear we get our revenge Wallabee Beatles! Even if it takes another eleven years!" shouted the Delightful adults.

Wally shook his head as they were dragged away by the authorities. Kuki looked up at Wally.

"Wally, that video….with under the pier…?"

Wally's smile disappeared and looked into her eyes.

"Kuki…it was a terrible thing to do and I never should have let it happen," he explained. "But it was a trick. I never even liked Amber and she sort of dragged me to that spot. She forced a kiss on me and used it as a distraction to drug me."

"Oh…okay," said Kuki. Somehow Wally didn't believe she was convinced.

"Listen Kuki, I would never betray you. I love you," said Wally. "I've always loved you. I should have never even gotten involved with her at all."

"I know," said Kuki. "And I forgive you. I love you too."

She leaned up and kissed Wally passionately. It was all the evidence Wally needed to know that she believed he was telling the truth. Wally returned her kiss feeling the weight lift from his shoulders. Once they broke apart Wally had to say something.

"Kuki," started Wally, "there is something I need to know."

"What's that?" she asked.

"Is there anyone back at home that you…you know…like?" asked Wally.

Kuki smiled and shook her head.

"Is that what's been bothering you?" she asked. "I've waited eleven whole years to be with you Wally. There's no one else that I'd rather be with."

"Hey you two are you all right?" interrupted one of the soldiers approaching them.

"We're fine," answered Wally. "Hey how did you guys find us anyway? The military I mean.."

The man's face lit up with a smile.

"Have you ever wondered what happens to those Kids Next Door operatives who never get decommissioned?" said the man winking. "Well, contrary to popular belief, the military doesn't exactly form itself you know. By the way, there are two guys here I'd like you to know about Mr. Beatles. Follow me outside please."

Kuki and Wally followed the man out of the warehouse and into the bright light. They were immediately greeted with familiar voices.

"Hey ya all right there mate?"

"Yeah ya scared the hell outta us!"

"Josh! Buck! How did you guys know where we were?" asked Wally.

"We used to be in the Kids Next Door too. Specialized in tracking, luckily for you guys huh" answered Josh proudly.

"And we used your genetic signature to locate you guys," added Buck.

Wally stood staring at them in amazement.

"Ya but, how did you guys do it all alone?" he asked.

"They didn't"

Wally and Kuki spun around to face Nigel and the rest of the team.

"Guys! You made it!" exclaimed Wally.

"When we found out Kuki had been kidnapped," explained Nigel, "we phoned Josh and Buck, a.k.a. numbuhs 486 and 487, for info on where you were Wally. When they told us you were gone as well we worked together and found out your location. We called in the military to help out with your rescue."

Wally turned back to Josh and Buck.

"I can't believe you guys were Kids Next Door operatives and you never told me!" said Wally.

"Sorry mate, it was confidential," said Buck.

"Yeh, but once we found out you were an operative too, we understood everything," added Josh.

"Thanks so much guys," said Wally as he hugged Kuki again. "I don't know what we would've done without your help."

"No problem mate," said Josh.

"Ya, ya now can we please go to the beach now," interrupted Abby, causing everyone to laugh.

"How about taking everyone to our secret spot?' offered Josh.

"Sounds good to me," said Wally. "But last one there buys lunch."

**Authors note: Once again an incredibly long gap between updates. I apologize, but I just have a lot of time for writing. Anyway one more chapter to go and previous chapters have been modified. So be patient people!**


	11. Goodbye

**Chapter 11: Goodbye**

Wally and Josh used their jeep and truck to drive everyone to the airport. Wally's passengers included Kuki, who was of course, next to him, Abby, who sat in the back, and Hoagie who sat with Abby. Josh and Buck carried the luggage in the back of the truck. Knowing that everyone else was in the jeep, Nigel decided he was best off riding with Josh and Buck in the truck. He was curious about their duties in the Kids Next Door anyway.

The airport was at least two hours away from the hotel, but they had left early to make sure they got on the plane on time. It was early morning and the sun wasn't even over the horizon yet. Josh followed Wally into an oversized parking and parked his truck next to Wally's jeep in a parking space that wasn't too far from the elevator. The seven friends got out of their vehicles and went around the back of Josh's truck to collect their belongings. Wally lifted out all the bags from the back and closed the tailgate. Everyone reached out and grabbed their bags and headed over to the elevator, but when Kuki prepared to carry her own bag Wally reached down and picked it up for her. He smiled down at her and she blushed. They both walked toward the elevator with an arm around each other.

After going through check-in and security, the seven friends had finally reached the gate. Apparently security had taken longer than expected and their plane was already boarding passengers.

"Ok guys we have to be quick and board or they won't let us on," said Hoagie. He and Abby said their goodbyes to Wally, Josh, and Buck and hurried on through the gate. Nigel followed them, but stopped and turned to look back at Kuki and Wally.

"Try not to stay too long," he warned.

"Don't worry," answered Kuki. Nigel nodded and turned to Wally. The two friends gave an understanding nod, then Nigel turned and went to catch up with Hoagie and Abby.

Kuki turned back toward Wally. Wally could see the tears in her eyes as she looked up at him.

"I guess this is goodbye," she said unhappily.

Wally took her hands in his and looked into her eyes. "Listen Kuki," he said, "I want you to be happy. Live a good life. Do what _you_ want. Marry who _you_ want. I don't care what you do as long as you're happy. I just ask one thing in return. Don't forget about me."

Kuki threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"I could never forget you Wally, even if I tried my hardest," she said. Kuki broke out of the hug and looked up at Wally again. Wally leaned in closer to her and Kuki moved toward him. The two of them came together for the last moment they would share with each other before they walked out of each other's lives forever. Wally didn't care if the entire airport was staring at them. He savored the kiss knowing no one could ever make him feel the way she did. When they finally broke apart they hugged one last time and Wally finally let her go.

"I'd better go," mumbled Kuki. She turned to pick up her bags and headed to the gate entrance. Once she handed the flight attendant her boarding pass, she looked back at Wally one last time. The message from their eye contact was enough to let each of them know that nothing could take away what they had. Kuki tore away from the moment and continued on to board the very plane that would take her away from her future.

Wally watched sadly as the plane soared off the runway and was engulfed by the orange sunrise. Wally turned his back on the runway and went to rejoin Josh and Buck.

"It'll be alright mate," said Josh as he placed a hand on Wally's shoulder.

"Yeah ya still got us," added Buck. Josh gave Buck a smug glance, but luckily Wally didn't catch Buck's remark.

"Thanks guys," he said, "but I really need some time alone."

"We understand," said Josh. "I think it's time we go back home now." The three of them headed back to the parking lot, got in their vehicles, and headed home.

Later that day, Wally sat on the beach outside his home watching the sunset. He let all of the memories of Kuki run freely through his overworked mind. He remembered the very first time he laid eyes on her; he had fallen for her from the start. He remembered all the years of their service in the Kids Next Door, those endless days of dangerous missions fighting evil adults. Then his memory settled on the time he first discovered she was in Australia and all their days together while she was on vacation with him. It seemed so unfair that his time with her had been so limited. He sighed and let the softening sound of the ocean waves take his mind away.

**Author's note: One more chapter to go! I realize in airports they you aren't allowed to have anyone walk to the gate with you, but I decided that wouldn't work with the story, so I changed it a bit. Anyway, special thanks to all the readers and reviewers who enjoy this story.**


	12. Five Months Later

**Epilogue: Five Months Later**

Wally was unstoppable! He had been dominating the Australian Amateur Surfing Competition since the moment he'd gone out for his first heat. It was a mystery why the other competitors hadn't given up yet. He had been landing clean stunts throughout the entire competition and hadn't missed a single wave.

The AASC was very important to Wally. He needed to win the competition in order to sign up with the best sponsors to make the most money. If he didn't win this year he would have to wait _another_ whole year before he could compete. Also, if the winner of the AASC had enough trick points, he or she automatically became a pro surfer; so naturally, Wally was going for first place.

The last two minutes were left in his final heat and Wally needed to catch two more waves to gain enough points to become pro. He spotted the next wave approaching him and started paddling furiously. As soon as the wave began to open up, he stopped paddling and stood up on his board carefully. After successfully standing, he whipped his board around to ride through the pipe before it closed up. He crouched down for more speed, but the pipe started closing on him. Before he could react the wave gave away and came crashing down on him. He lost control of his balance and was swept off his board.

When he finally got back to the surface his foot felt like it was on fire. It wasn't too long before he realized he had twisted his ankle. He was about to call for a jet ski to pick him up out of the deadly ocean current, but then came the one minute warning. He still needed the last few points from the last wave to win the title of becoming a pro surfer.

Wally raced through the trashing waves and back out onto the flat water. When he finally made it he noticed the next wave was already approaching him. Without time to wait for the next wave, Wally turned around and began paddling with the last bit of strength he had left. With a small spark of luck, he barely caught the wave.

He made great effort to stand up on his board due to his ankle. He succeeded and dropped down into the wave. He had been lucky; the pipe opened up perfectly for him. He crouched down, gained speed, and entered the pipe. He soared through the rolling crystal blue tunnel easily and made it out just before it caved in. The crowd went wild as the horn signaled the end of the last heat.

The second Wally stepped off his board he was greeted by camera flashes from hundreds of sponsors and reporters. He pushed them aside and called over the medic to assist him. Wally was carried over to the medical tent where he was laid on a raised table mat. The medic told him the nurse would check him to make sure he hadn't actually broken his ankle instead of just twisting it. He nodded and allowed the medic to leave.

Wally shut his eyes and took in a deep breath to relax.

"_I just won the AASC!" _he thought. _"I've done it! I'm a pro surfer!"_

Wally lie in triumph knowing that even though there were still three other competitors finishing their last heat, he had beat them to the prize. Finally, he could afford to buy a better house, better clothes, and a better car.

"That was quite a fall," said a voice interrupting Wally's daydreams. Wally recognized the voice as female and assumed it was the nurse who was supposed to check on him.

"Yea, but I'm alright," said Wally. "So is everything all right with my ankle?"

"You're fine," said the nurse. "It's only twisted; no big deal."

"Thanks for the help," said Wally, slowly sitting up. "Well I'd better be go…."

He froze when he saw the person who was standing before him. "Kuki!"

Kuki smiled and threw her arms around him. "I missed you so much," she said. "I couldn't stand being so far away."

Wally smiled returned her hug. "Me neither," he said. After a long while they finally let go of one another.

"So what are you doing here anyway?" Wally asked. "I mean how did you get the time to come back?"

"I got into one of Universities here!" explained Kuki. "I got a job as a medic and I want to become a doctor when I get out of school."

Wally smiled and lied back down on the mat. "This is the greatest day of my life," he said. "I should probably go sign up with a sponsor huh?"

Kuki approached Wally and leaned over, hovering only about two inches from his face,

"I think you should stay a little longer," she said.

She leaned in closer and their lips came together for the first time since they had parted, which for Wally had been far too long ago.

* * *

A month later, in the middle of spring, Kuki and Wally headed over to the Great Barrier Reef for the day. For Wally, the scenery was perfect: the trees were in bloom, the flowers were blossoming, the ocean was a deep crystal blue that spread out like a blanket across the landscape, the most amazing girl he had ever come to know was sitting next to him in his brand new jeep.

Kuki loved it when Wally took her out to adventure Australia. She loved the time they spent together and the different places they went. This time he had said he wanted to show her a special place that was near the Great Barrier Reef. Kuki was excited, but didn't really care if they got there quickly or not.

When they finally reached their destination, Wally parked the jeep in a small, empty parking lot. He got out and took Kuki over to the end of a short pier where an old oak tree's branches were dangling over into the water. It was the type of spot where an artist would want to capture the scenery in a colorful painting. Wally picked Kuki up and set her on a large branch over the water.

"Look down," he said while leaning on the branch. "You don't even need to use scuba gear to see the fish here."

Kuki turned and looked down into the crystal clear water. Sure enough, she could see all types of aquatic life between the sparkling reefs.

"It's beautiful," she said.

"Yeah," said Wally as he gazed at her, taking in her beauty. Kuki was so amazed by the reef that she didn't notice Wally's dreamlike expression.

"So was this the surprise you were talking about?" asked Kuki.

Wally's mind was finally brought back to the real world. "No I have something else for you," he said, "but you have to close your eyes."

"Okay," said Kuki as she shut her eyes. "Just don't push me off the branch."

Wally laughed. "Don't worry," he chuckled. There were a few seconds of silence before he spoke up."Okay you can open your eyes now," he said.

Kuki opened her eyes. There, kneeling before her, was Wally. He was holding up a priceless wedding ring. Kuki's heart skipped a beat and she gently placed a hand over her lips.

"Wally…is….is that…?"

Wally's voice broke his silence. "Kuki Sanban, will you marry me?"

Kuki was overwhelmed with joy. This was the moment she had dreamed of her whole life and it had finally come true. She wanted to scream to the whole world how wonderful her life was.

She hopped down from the willow branch and threw her arms around Wally, who was almost knocked over in the process.

"I'll take that as a yes," coughed Wally. Kuki noticed that she was suffocating him and loosened her grip.

"Sorry," she said. "You just don't know how long I've been waiting for you to ask that."

She leaned in and kissed Wally on the lips. Wally slowly fell backward pulling her down with him. Their minds were wrapped around their fantasies and the life they would soon share together.

**Author's note:** Well that's it. The story is complete. Special thanks to anyone who was interested, read, and reviewed. Hope you all liked it.


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